Shoulder brace



R. A WILLIAMS AND A. J. WAGNER.

SHOULDER BRACE. APPLlCATlON FILED JULY 21, 1921.

1,406,795. Patented Feb.14, 1922.

UNITED stares PATENT QFFIQE,

RALPH A. WILLIAMS AND ALBERT- WA NER, or BELorr, WISCONSIN.

SHOULDER BRACE.

Application med July 21,

declare the following to be a full, clear, and

exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertainsQto make and use the same.

This invention relates to improved shoulder braces, it being the principal aim of the invention to devise a device of this class which is such in construction that it will effectively force the shoulder blades rearwardly and toward each other, tend to throw the chest out, brace the back, and in every way assist in maintaining this portion of the body .erect.

Another object of the invention is to provide a brace of this class embodying a waist encircling member carrying upstanding rods which extend upwardly over the chest and have their free endsdirected toward each other and terminating near the juncture of the arms and shoulder, providing an arrangement which at all times reminds the wearer that his shoulders are not being held back as they should be. Hence, roundshouldered persons can have their shoulders restored to their natural or original position by making constant use of braces of such formation.

Another object of the invention is to provide an arrangement which includes the aforesaid upstanding arms bearing against the chest, together with means for exerting rearward pull on these members and at the same time tending to force the upper portion of the back forwardly so that the shoulder blades will be acted on in such a way as to move rearwardly and come together and assume a position which will cause this portion of the body to remain erect. r A. further and important object of the in vention is to generally improve upon braces of this class by the provision of a structure which is adapted to accomplish effective results, one which is strong and durable, and is so simple in construction that it can be manufactured and retailed at extremely low costs to all concerned.

Other objects and advantages of the in- Specificaticn of Letters Patent. Patented 1921. Serial 1%. 486,551.

vention will beapparent during the course of the following description.

in the accompanying drawings forming a part of'this specification and in which like numerals are employed to designate like parts throughout the same:

Figure 1 is a front perspective view of a person wearing our improved shoulder brace.

Figure 2 is a view looking at the back of the person and showing the elastic hand back 111st beneath which passes across the the shoulder blades, 7 I

Figure is an enlarged rear perspective view of'a device constructed in accordance with'this invention, showing the construction and arrangement of parts more clearly.

"Referring to the drawings by numerals, 1 designates a'waist-encircling belt which in cludes the stretchless fabric portions 2 and elastic connecting portions 3. The numerals 4 designate buckles of suitable construction which are arranged approximately dia metrically opposite one another in front and back to permit a double adjustment. to be Feb. 14, 1922.

had. Rising upwardly from and connected lJOdllllS belt- 1 and disposed at points ap proximately diametrically opposite one another are metal rods 5 which have their upper ends curved gradually inwardly toward one another as indicated at 6. As before pointed out, with this arrangement the bracing members 5 when in use, and as shown clearly in Fig. 1, extend upwardly over the front portion of the body and chest and the upper. curved extremities rest onthe chest adjacent the uppermost ribs and when drawn 'rearwardly or toward the body,'cause the shoulders to be elevated and; the shoulder blades to moverea-rwardly and toward each other and remain in such a position as long asthe device is in use. At this point, it is to be stated that the rods are preferably wrapped with fabric material 7 and suitably shaped pads 8 are arranged on the upper extremities of the rods and insure comfort to the wearer. However, if the shoulders are allowed to droop forwardly as is ordinarily the case, the ends of the padded rod will inflict a slight pain upon the person for the moment and remind him to straighten his shoulders.

To exert a rearward pull on the members 5 and to also tend to force inwardly on the back, we preferably make use of an adjustof the back at a point just beneath the shoulder blades. It is yet to be pointed out that to increase the rigidity and strength of the device and insure that it will be properly held in place, we provide the members '5 with longitudinally curved lateral extensions 10 which are connected with the sections 2 of the atoresaid belt 1.. being disposed be tween the pieces or fabric oi which these parts of the be t are composed.

In use. the belt 1. is placed about the waist in the position clearly indicated in Fig. 1 and the buckles are adjusted to cause the belt to rather snugly fit the body. Then, the elastic strap or band 9 drawn tight across the back and the members 5 are simultaneously drawn tightly against the chest and "the shoulder blades forced rearwardly and toward each other. Due to the elasticity of the band 9, the back is forced sligrl'rtly forwardaso that the entire upper portion of the body is caused to assume an erect and proper )OSliiOll. After the device is in place. it will not interfere with tree movement of the arms and will not interfere with free movement of the upper portion of the body, but at the same time it will hold the shoulders back and at all times remind the wearer that the shoulders should be held in such a way.

3y carefully considering the description in connection with the drawings, persons familiar with devices of this class will doubtless be able to obtain a clear understanding of the invention.- Therefore, a more lengthy and detailed description is deemed unnecessary.

Since probably the best results may be obtained with the construction and arrangement, herein shown and described,-;this is taken as the preferred embodiment of the invention. However, we wish it to be understood that minor changes coming within the scope of the subjoined claims may be resorted to if desired.

We claim 1. A shoulder brace comprising a body encircling'member, a pair of upstanding bracing members carried by said member and extending upwardly across the forward portion of the body and chest and having their upper ends directed inwardly toward each other and terminating adjacent the shoulders and bearing against the chest.

. 2. The structure set forth in claim 1, t0- e'ether with means for eXert-inga rearward pull on said bracing members and for simultaneously exertinga forward push on the back just below the shoulder blades.

3. A shoulder bracing device of the class described comprising a belt for-encircling tl'iewaist, diametrically opposite upstanding lu'acin i memberscarried by said belt and extending over. the chest and terminating adjacent the clavica-l bonesythe upper extremities of said members being curved to conform tothe portion or the body algainst which they bear. and an adjustable band connectingat its ends tosaid members and extending across the back adjacent the shoulder blades. 1 l i 4. A shoulder brace comprising a pair of substantially L-sha-ped rods, the vertical portions of which have their upper ends curved inwardly toward each other, and a body- .encirclin ,retaining band connected tothe horizontal portions of said rods.

5. A shoulder brace comprising an adjustable waist-encircling belt, a pair of diametrically oppositely disposed vertieal rods having their lower ends directed horizontally and connected to said belt, the vertical portions of the rod being extended upardly over the front portions of the body and across the chest, the upper ends of said last-named portions] being curved laterally inwardly toward each other and terminating adjacent the clavieal bones, a. covering for the vertical portions of said rods, pads on the extremities of the latter, and elastie bands extending across the back just below the shoulders, the inner ends thereof being adjust-ably connected together and opposite ends being connected to the More said vertical portions of said rods.

In testimony whereof we have hereunto set ourhands.

' RALPH A. NVILLIAMS.

ALBERT J. WAGNER. 

